Eva Longoria on her new show: Returning to television was a 'big deal'

By Alex Cramer

August 16, 2015

She became a household name after her starring role in the long-running Desperate
Housewives
, and Eva Longoria will finally be returning with a brand new show to heat up our screens. Comedy series Hot
& Bothered,
about the over-the-top star of a Latino soap opera, will premiere on NBC later this year.

“We
just started," said Eva, who is also the executive producer for the show. "It's a blast. The scripts are hilarious. I just can't
wait for America to see it. For me to go back to television was a big
deal and I knew it was going to be with something special so I wanted to
do it with that."
"I just can't
wait for America to see it," she says of her steamy new show
Hot & Bothered Photo: Getty Images

The star was speaking to HELLO! as she joined her friend Holly Robinson Peete for the HollyRod Foundation’s 2015 DesignCare Gala – and she filled us in about her dedication to the organization, which aims to help provide compassionate care to those living with autism and Parkinson’s disease.

Eva's sister Liza has special needs, so autism and helping individuals with disabilities is an issue that is near and dear her heart. “Holly and I have been friends for
many, many years and we’re always brainstorming how we can really
conquer this big issue and how we can, not only figure out medically
some solutions, but to give support to families that need help today," she said.

She has also done extensive charity work through her own organization, The
Eva Longoria Foundation, so she's no stranger to working hard for good causes. “It's
important that everybody is aware, and is also donating, whether it's
their time, their funds, their energy, their voice. There's so much work
that goes into everything
that goes behind the HollyRod Foundation so people need to understand
she can't do it alone.”

As if
acting, producing and philanthropy weren’t challenging enough,
Eva (who invited HELLO! to her 40th birthday party in March) has another passion on her plate: she's the owner of Hollywood restaurant Beso. But which of her jobs, TV or the restaurant biz, is most difficult to manage? “Oh, definitely
restaurant!" she exclaimed. "I'm really lucky Beso is
still around and we're still doing great, but it definitely had to
be a passion project.”

Also attending the HollyRod gala was Jussie Smollett, star of Empire – and Eva says she's a "huge fan" of the show. But as she returns to TV, can we expect her in a cameo, à la Mariah Carey, who will be making an appearance on the hip hop drama? Well, unfortunately for fans, the answer is no. "I don't fit into that world!" she laughed. "The music world is not for me."